Meeting An Old Friend
by cheri1
Summary: Tenth Doctor. One Shot. After landing in Manhattan for the 4th of July in 1984, the Doctor happens to bump into Lazlo again.


A/N: I got an idea to do this because I liked Lazlo from Daleks in Manhattan and I always thought he got a bum deal since the Doctor saved his life but didn't fix his face. This takes place after Waters of Mars.

(New York City, July 4th, 1984...)

The Doctor smiled as he strolled down the sidewalk. It was a beautiful summer day in Manhattan. Independence Day for America and the Doctor decided to come and watch the citywide fireworks display while he toured the city. Ever since Adelaide, he had been going to random places trying to escape the prophecy and the doom he knew was coming. He tried not to think of what he did that night and how his actions were another step towards becoming the Valeyard. He shivered as he thought of that day in the courtroom when that Valeyard revealed his true identity to his sixth self and knowing that one day he might become the very thing he was fighting against filled with a terror that was even worse than facing any Dalek.

He wandered into Times Square and looked around at the other people. He chuckled at some of the outlandish '80's fashions, the colored Mohawks and rat tails, the day glo clothing and the ripped shirts and leg warmers. One thing he loved about the '80's was the interesting clothing styles the humans adopted during that time. He noticed a couple of young people on the street corner breakdancing for coins and he strolled over to watch them. He regretted not having any change for them since both of them were extremely talented but he looked into the hat the men had put down for people to put their change in and noticed they were making quite a bit of money so he felt better about that. While he watched, he noticed a few other people stop for a moment, put some coins and dollar bills in the hat and move on.

After a few minutes, he moved on as well. He was moving out of Times Square when he froze. He swore he heard someone calling his name amidst all the conversations of the humans around him but he dismissed it, thinking someone was just talking about doctors in general. Then he heard his name being called again and he turned to see someone coming towards him. His eyes widened when he saw the pig face and his mouth dropped open.

"Lazlo?" he said.

Lazlo smiled at him as he slowly came towards him. He was using a cane and it was slow going through the crowd of people. A few people recoiled in shock at his face but most of the crowd were busy doing other things and didn't notice him. His face was deeply lined by age and the Doctor could tell his hair was snow white from what little he saw poking out from the fedora on his head.

"Dear God, you…haven't aged a bit," Lazlo said, walking up to him. "Makes me want to hit you with my cane."

The Doctor chuckled.

"Hello, Lazlo," he said warmly.

"Hello, Doctor, happy Fourth of July."

"And you, nice to see you again."

"Yeah, well, I didn't age quite as well as you," Lazlo said. "Where's Martha? Is she around here?"

"No," the Doctor said. "She…left."

"Why?"

"She…needed to go home and take care of her family," the Doctor said, neglecting to tell him why she needed to take care of her family.

"Damn, it would have been nice to see her."

"What about Tallulah? Where is she? Is she alright?" the Doctor said.

"She…died last year."

"Oh…I'm sorry," the Doctor said.

"Yeah, cancer took her; I'm still trying to cope with the loss. I have my son and daughter to look after me but it's just not the same."

The Doctor smiled.

"So, you and she did have children?"

"Yup. And we have three grandchildren, two girls and a boy."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks. They're my life, even more so now that Tallulah's gone. I'm not ready for the nursing home yet but I'm getting there. Actually, considering my appearance, I think they're trying to keep me out of the nursing home."

"I'm sorry, Lazlo, I wasn't able to do anything about your face. I'm so, so sorry."

"Nah, it's alright. I got used to the odd looks and the teasing. I had Tallulah and my family and they were all I needed to get me through life. Tallulah did carry on with her showgirl act for awhile and actually she managed to become a Rockette so we were able to save up and buy a nice house for our family. I did consider joining a circus and being in a freak show during the depression but I managed to find a nice guy who took me under his wing and taught me to do construction work. I helped with a few projects during the depression and stayed with the guy until he died in the 1950's. Then I went into business for myself and managed to make some friends and had some loyal clients who didn't mind that I had a pig face. We lived very comfortably and I managed to put my kids through college. My son's a lawyer and my daughter is an RN so they're well off too."

"Good, I'm glad," the Doctor said. "I'm glad that you've had happiness in your life despite your appearance."

"Um…" Lazlo said, pointing across the street to a punker with a spiked blue Mohawk and spikes all over his leather jacket. "You see that, you're worried about my appearance. Some of these damn kids look like clowns."

The Doctor laughed and nodded.

"Blue hair?" Lazlo said. "I'd rather have a pig face than look like a peacock. Kids, today. Wasn't like this in my day. In my day we had good music, now it's all this hip hop crap and disco and new wave. Things have certainly changed since I last saw you."

"Listen to you, the stereotypical old man," the Doctor said, amused.

Lazlo chuckled.

"Yeah, I know, I hate when I do that but it's the truth. All these men wearing makeup and earrings and those god-awful fluorescent outfits that blind you even if you're ten miles away. I'm shocked I haven't done the whole when I was your age I walked ten miles to school in the snow barefoot speech to my kids and grandkids, but I suppose that's coming any day now. So, what brings you back to the Big Apple?"

"Oh, thought I'd watch the fireworks on the East River tonight, interested? I could use the company."

"Well…normally, I'd say no since that's a hell of a lot of people to navigate through but since it's you, I'd be honored."

The Doctor smiled.

"Then until that time would you accompany me on a tour of Manhattan?"

"Yes, but I was on my way to get something to eat. Would you mind if I treated you to a meal? Least I can do after all you've done for me."

"I'd be honored," the Doctor said.

"And don't worry, it won't be pork," Lazlo said, nudging him.

The Doctor laughed.

"I wasn't going to make that comment," he said while they walked away.

"Figured that which is why I beat you to the punch, my friend," Lazlo said.

The Doctor chuckled away and smiled as he strolled through Manhattan with his old friend.

THE END.


End file.
